Poor Performance of the Mexican National Team in the Gold Cup

In general, the poor performance of the Mexican national team in the Gold Cup has been marked by the apparent low level that Juan Carlos Osorio's team has shown in not only the matches of this tournament, but also in the preparation matches.

Players like Orbelín Pineda, Jesús Dueñas, Rodolfo Pizarro, Jesús Gallardo, and Elías Hernández have been the ones who have maintained some consistency in the team; however, José de Jesús Corona has acted as a true savior of this selection.

Arrival to the Gold Cup

This 'B' selection that competes in the Gold Cup could be said to only have one element from the 'A' selection, which is José de Jesús Corona. His experience and consistency are a guarantee.

As it is well known, the goalkeeper of La Máquina was considered in Juan Carlos Osorio's plans to form the group that would go to the Confederations Cup; however, a knee injury kept him from attending Russia.

After this, the goalkeeper who took his place was Rodolfo Cota, a player who was originally on the list for the Gold Cup.

Saving Matches with Great Saves

Since the preparation matches against Ghana and Paraguay, Corona had been showing the good level that characterizes him, which was reflected in the first match of the Cup against El Salvador, where -perhaps- he showed his only mistake in the goal he conceded in this match.

Against Curacao, the goalkeeper of La Máquina justified his undisputed starting position, saving three clear goal opportunities from the Caribbean team, which, beyond costing the team points and a possible drop in positions, also served to save them from ridicule, which would have further undermined this selection.

The confirmation of Corona came in the match against Honduras, in the quarterfinals, where although he had certain errors, once again his saves saved the game for El Tri; the most important was the one that could have been an Olympic goal by Alex López in the 78th minute. So far, Corona has made 13 saves in the tournament.

Alive Competition

The participation of the goalkeeper from Cruz Azul makes him a clear candidate to be considered the best goalkeeper of the Gold Cup, especially if Mexico manages to win the title and secure the half-ticket for the 2021 Confederations Cup.

Corona is one of the most consistent elements in the Mexican national team's call-ups, as since November 2014, the goalkeeper has barely missed any call-up for El Tri; however, it is no secret that of the three goalkeepers who are normally taken into account, he has had the least amount of playing time, being relegated to a third position. He has managed to stay in the call-ups due to his experience, level with the team, consistency, or seniority.

With this performance, the La Máquina goalkeeper could once again position himself in an important role for the final stretch of the Hexagonal Qualifiers in Concacaf and, above all, for the start of 2018, competing again with Ochoa and Talavera for a possible starting spot in the World Cup in Russia. His value would once again increase exponentially.